Hey folks! It’s Jessica from L-A-B guest posting!

HI!

We are frantically pulling the last details for the BIG, HUGE, FANTASTIC, AMAZING, ALL PIT BULL (and their friends), ALL THE TIME , FESTIVAL AND PITTIE PARADE  in November!  And getting SO excited!  It is going to be fantastic!

You are all coming, right?!  Still on the fence?  Well, we have several confirmed guests (Holly Marie Combs, BAD RAP, John Shipe) and just confirmed another one!  SHARKY the Pit Bull!  I bet you are coming now!

No offense, but if you have not heard of Sharky the Texas pit bull – you do not have access to the internet.  Or, like my grandmother, computers scare you.

I digress – Sharky the big, beautiful, gentle PB type dog and YouTube favorite has confirmed with us that he is attending the festival!  In costume with his mom no less!  They will be walking in the parade and col’ kicking it with us and our doggies at the festival!  By the way, there will be a costume contest – so get your dogs ready!

You can find his YouTube movies here: SHARKY THE SUPER RAD PIT BULL FROM TEXAS.

I can’t decide which is my favorite.. Is it the bunny ones?  Or the chick ones?  And, who doesn’t love a cat pestering a dog video?

They are all great!  What a fantastic breed ambassador!

So, get those doggie costumes ready and come on down on the 6th!  Meet and mingle with all of our special guests, including Sharky.  And, let’s celebrate our pit bull type doggies in front of the whole city!  Hell, in front of the whole state!  No, wait – in front of the whole country!

Oh!  And be sure and check this out!  Sharky and his mom, Helen made a special video just for little ol’ us!  Dogs in hats are awesome…Jus’ sayin’

See you in November!

XOXO – Jessica

Tagged: #Austin, #BadRap, #costumes, #HollyMarieCombs, #JohnShipe, #Love-A-Bull, #SharkyThePitbull, #youtube, advocacy, calendar, dog, event, family fun weekend, free, friendly, fundraiser, national pit bull awareness day, news media, nonprofit, pit bull, rescueFiled under: Events, PBAD

Check out a great article by Love-A-Bull’s Meghan Turner on Best Friend’s website about our Pit Bull Awareness Weekend events.

Promoting Positive Perception of Pits by Meghan Turner
http://network.bestfriends.org/golocal/texas/13597/news.aspx

Tagged: advocacy, education, event, family fun weekend, national pit bull awareness day, nonprofit, pit bullFiled under: Events

The National Pit Bull Awareness Day Celebration (Oct. 24 and 25) was a HUGE success. Thank you to special guest John Garcia and all the sponsors, vendors, and volunteers that helped us pull it off!

Hundreds of people and their dogs were in attendance throughout the weekend events. We gathered tons of signatures for our anti-BSL petition, talked about our free training program, spread awareness about pit bulls and owner issues, and raised funds for our programs and initiatives.

Congratulations to our raffle winners! Please contact lydia@love-a-bull.org to claim your prize.

• Southwest Airline Tickets: John Pope
• $500 Tattoo Gift Certificate: Dwain Williams
• $250 Lee Mannix Training Certificate: Deb Whitaker
• $235 Blanton Museum Package: Joe Soto
• Custom Jewelry by Eleven17Finery: Amy Herzog
• $100 Gift Certificate from Midtown Grooming: Melissa Alvarado
• OnGuard Bike Package: Patricia Hutt
• $50 Gift Certificate to Cafe Josie: Susan Peters

Check out some of the photos of the events (below) and lots more here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=329268&id=543660631&l=89078ce855 and http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2027189&id=1030100074&l=ccf3f60e1a

Family Fun Day (Oct. 24)

Joe Seabrooke wearing a Michael Vick jersey–in the dunk tank!

A bumblebee puppy

The crowd at Family Fun Day

John Garcia and Samantha Foss from Best Friends

Pet Parade and Costume Contest (Oct. 25)

Getting ready for the pet parade

A lion

Arr, matey! Pirate dog

Best Friends' John Garcia and Love-A-Bull co-founders Lydia Zaidman and Meghan Turner

Bat-dog

One of the contest winners: the Bat Bridge, and a bunch of bats!

Tagged: dog, event, family fun weekend, free, national pit bull awareness day, nonprofit, pit bullFiled under: Events

Please join Love-A-Bull in welcoming Best Friends Animal Sanctuary’s famous dog handler John Garcia to Austin on the weekend of October 24-25, 2009, to participate in a weekend of family-friendly events in Austin.

John is nationally known for working extensively to rehabilitate 22 of the 49 dogs (now affectionately referred to as the “Vicktory Dogs”) seized from the bust of the Michael Vick/Bad Newz Kennels dog fighting ring. He is best known for his work and public appearances with Georgia, a sweet, 7-year old toothless female pit bull who, despite being a victim of cruelty and abuse, responds with love to all she meets.

The weekend will feature these FREE events:

A Family Fun Day with John Garcia
October 24, 5 PM – 9 PM at Zilker Hillside Theater
Free to the public! Dogs on leash are welcome. Chairs are not permitted, but blankets or towels are encouraged.

This fun-filled evening of activities will include:

• A public screening of National Geographic Channel’s “Dog Town,” including footage of John working with the Vicktory Dogs at Best Friends (begins at 7:30 PM). Courtesy of The Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow.
• Autographs with John Garcia
• Games and crafts, including: henna tattoos, face painting, balloon animals, bandanna painting
• Under Pressure t-shirt silk screening
• Pumpkin patch photo booth
• Dunk tank (dunk “Michael Vick” for charity!)
• Raffle
• Refreshments: Amy’s Ice Cream, Aloha Sno-Cones and Waffles, Zuzu’s tacos, Solar Natural Foods, Sweet Leaf tea
• Pick the Pit Bull game, trivia, and prize giveaways
• Information and adoptable pets from Emancipet, Happy Endings, Town Lake Animal Center, Best Friends, and Reunion Rescue
• Booths featuring our trainer, Jessica Wilson and Haute Dog Magazine

A Downtown Pet Parade and Costume Contest, led by John Garcia
October 25, 2 PM at Austin City Hall
Free to the public! Bring your leashed loved ones and the whole family for this walk through downtown. Austin Java and Lofty Dog will provide rest stops, and there will be prizes for the best dog costumes!  DJ Yoshi will be spinning tunes for your enjoyment. Free Parking in the City Hall Garage (entrance on Lavaca).

Sponsors

You can be a sponsor and see your company logo featured prominently here!

Click here to find out how to sponsor.

Tagged: advocacy, dog, education, event, family fun weekend, free, national pit bull awareness day, nonprofit, participants, pet owner, pit bullFiled under: Events

Thanks to everyone who came to the proclamation to show their support for Love-A-Bull! We made quite an impression on city council.

Tagged: advocacy, city council, event, family fun weekend, mayoral proclamation, national pit bull awareness day, pit bullFiled under: Events

101X (101.5 FM) interviewed John Garcia for Love-A-Bull’s Pit Bull Awareness Weekend!

The interview took place on 10/21/09. Listen to the interview (mp3).

Tagged: dog, event, family fun weekend, John Garcia, national pit bull awareness day, nonprofit, pit bullFiled under: Media Coverage

As our National Pit Bull Awareness Weekend celebration approaches, we’re going to be featured on the Morning Show with Deb and Jason on 101X (101.5 FM)!

Tune in to 101.5 FM on Wednesday, 10/21, at 9:15 AM to hear Deb interview our special guest of honor, John Garcia, Best Friends’ rehabilitator of Michael Vick’s dogs. He’ll also talk about our weekend full of events.

Tagged: advocacy, dog, event, family fun weekend, free, Media Coverage, nonprofit, pit bullFiled under: Events

View the press release here: http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/charity/index.html

Tagged: dog, event, family fun weekend, national pit bull awareness day, nonprofit, pit bullFiled under: Media Coverage